Safety trigger shield for firearms



June 7, 1955 s. BOHENEK SAFETY TRIGGER SHIELD FOR FIREARMS Filed June18, 1952 INVENTOR ieven Boivenek ATTQRNEY antigens QAFETY TRIGGERfiHIELD FGR FREEARMS Steven Bohenelr, Wallington, N. J.

Appiieation June 18, 1952, Serial No. 294,116

4- (Ilaims. (Cl. 42-70) This invention relates to a safety triggershield for firearms. More particularly, the invention relates to ashield of such type that it completely covers the trigger of thefirearm, thereby precluding accidental discharge of such firearm, andfurther to a shield which is quickly operable to expose the trigger ofthe firearm for normal shooting of the gun.

Firearms of the type to which the safety shield of the present inventionis designed to be attached, such as rifles and shotguns, are ordinarilyprovided with a safety, which effectively locks the hammer or firing pinof the firearm from operation. Such ordinary safeties are reliable, butit takes considerable training of the gunner to allow him to use thefirearm, with proper use of the safety,'while hunting in the fieldwithout undue loss of time in shooting. scious thought on the part ofthe gunner to retract the safety in order to be able to shoot with a gunon which the ordinary safety is maintained on while the gun is beingcarried.

Because of the time which it takes to release the ordinary safety beforethe gun is shot, many hunters are in the habit of leaving such safetyofi" while in the field, so that they can shoot more quickly. Thispractice, however, is the source of many accidents which arise by thecatching of the trigger of the gun upon objects such as twigs, thebuttons on the hunters coat, etc. Furthermore, the ordinary safety on agun such as a rifle or shotgun cannot be locked from operation bychildren, as for instance when the gun is stored at home.

I have found that in every rifle and shotgun in good condition thesystem composed of the trigger and the hammer and/ or firing pin isstable, that is, the gun when cocked cannot be discharged by appreciablemechanical shocks such as occur when the gun is dropped from aconsiderable height, unless the trigger is pulled in the firingdirection by some object with which it comes in contact. Accordingly,the ordinary safety whereby the hammer and/ or firing pin are locked isnot necessary for complete assurance against accidental discharge of thegun if the trigger is covered so as to prevent its coming into contactwith an object which will pull it to discharge the gun. The safetytrigger shield of my invention covers the trigger of the firearm so thatthere is no possibility of actuating the trigger accidentally, theshield being of such construction that it may be locked in place. Theshield of the invention is preferably automatically operable, that is,it is constantly urged into trigger covering position without thenecessity of conscious thought on the part of the gunner. Such shield,however, is quickly operable by the hunter by a part of the sameinstinctive motion with which his trigger hand slides backwardly uponthe gun to present the index finger to the trigger. Thus there is littleor no additional time required to operate a gun equipped with the safetyshield of the invention. In the shield shown in the specificillustrative embodiment, means is provided detachably to secure theshield to the trigger guard, so that no alteration of the Furthermore,it takes con- ZjidhfifiS Patented .lune i, 1955 gun itself is required,such attachment of the shield being effected with ordinary tools such aspliers and screw driver. The shield of the invention may, if desired, bemade an integral part of the gun, as by being incorporated thereinduring manufacture of such gun.

It is among the objects of the invention to provide a safety triggershield for firearms which is quickly and easily operated to move it fromthe trigger covering, safety, position to the open position wherein thegun trigger is exposed.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of the abovetype of trigger shield which may be locked in safety, trigger covering,position.

Yet another object of the invention resides in the provision of a safetytrigger shield for firearms which is quickly operable by the sameinstinctive motion by which the hunter places his finger on the triggerof the firearm.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a safety triggershield for firearms which is automatically actuated to trigger covering,safety, position.

A still further object of the invention resides in the provision of suchshield which may be quickly attached to a gun without alteration of thelatter and without requiring special tools for so doing.

A further object of the invention is generally to improve safety devicesfor firearms.

Further objects and objects relating to details and economies ofconstruction, manufacture, assembly, and use will more definitely appearfrom the detailed description to follow.

My invention is clearly defined in the appended claims. Where parts are,for clarity and convenience, referred to on the basis of their orientedposition shown in the accompanying drawing, no limitation as topositioning of the entire structure is to be implied, since it will beunderstood that the entire structure may be inverted or that it may beused in any inclined position. Also in both the description and theclaims, parts at times may be identified by specific names for clarityand convenience, but such nomenclature is to be understood as having thebroadest meaning consistent with the context and with the concept of myinvention as distinguished from the pertinent prior art. The best formin which I have contemplated applying my invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawing forming part of this specification, in which:

Fig. l is a view in side elevation of a single barrel shotgun of thehammer type, the safety shield of the invention being shown appliedthereto, such shield being shown in closed, safety, position, and thehammer of the gun being shown in cocked position;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in side elevation of that por tion of the gunin Fig. l. at the trigger, trigger guard, and safety shield, portions ofsuch shield being shown in vertical section;

Fig. 3 is a view somewhat similar to Fig. 2, the safety shield beingshown in open, retracted position, portions of the gun being shown inside elevation;

Fig. 4 is a view in plan of the safety shield in applied, closed,position on a trigger guard, parts of the trigger guard and trigger ofthe gun being shown in horizontal section; and

Fig. 5 is a view in vertical section through the means for pivotallyattaching the safety shield to the gun, the pivot pin being shown inelevation.

in Fig. 1 the gun designated 2 is a single barrel shotgun of the hammertype, the hammer being shown in cocked position. It will be understood,however, that the safety shield of the present invention may be appliedas well to rifles, revolvers, automatic pistols, etc. The gun 2 isprovided with the customary trigger 4 whereby the hammer 6 may beactuated, when it is cocked, to fire the gun. Located about the trigger4 and attached to the body of the gun is the transversely-open triggerguard 8.

The safety shield, generally designated It is a troughshaped body openat its top and having a bottom wall portion 18 generally correspondingin shape to, but somewhat larger than, the bottom portion of the triggerguard 8. Such bottom wall has upturned end portions, the forward portionthereof generally following the configuration of the trigger guard 8,whereas the rear portion is curved upwardly more gently, as shown moreclearly in Figs. 2 and 3. Integral with the bottom wall 18 are thespaced parallel side walls 16 attached to the bottom wall along oppositeside edges thereof and extending upwardly above the bottom wall toterminate in a generally straight upper edge designed to contact thegenerally fiat under surface 14 of the gun at the location of, andforwardly of, the trigger 4.

The side walls 16 are spaced laterally of each other a distancesufiicient to receive the trigger 4 and the trigger guard 8 within thethus formed hollow body It? without contacting or binding upon either.The forward end of the bottom wall 18 is cut out in a U-shape, as shownat 20 in Figs. 2, 3, and 4, to accommodate trigger guards of at leastslightly diiferent lengths without binding upon them. The rear end ofthe bottom wall of the shield 10 is smoothly curved first upwardly andthen rearwardly and downwardly into the auxiliary, shield operatingtrigger 12.

In the embodiment of the invention shown, the shield is designed to beattachable to the gun without alteration of the gun itself in anymanner. This result is accomplished by the provision of a clamp whichdetachably secures the shield to the rear portion of the trigger guardof the gun. Such clamping means is composed of the two clamp bodyforming portions 22 which form, in effect, a split clamp, such bodieshaving opposing upper and lower C-shaped tangs 24 and 26 thereon forembracing the edges of the trigger guard, the bodies 22 and the tangs 24and 26 making engagement with the trigger guard in the manner shown inFigs. 2 and 4. The two clamp parts are, as is evident, mirror images ofeach other. The clamps are further provided with rearwardly extendingcars 28 through which extends the clamp securing sleeve 30 which, asshown, is threaded throughout its length.

In mounting the shield upon the gun in the manner shown herein, the twoclamp portions are mounted upon opposite sides of the trigger guard inthe location shown, after which the sleeve 30 is passed through theholes in the ears thereof. The clamp parts are then held firmly ingripping relationship on the trigger guard by applying the nuts 32 tothe sleeve outwardly of the ears 28 and tightening them thereagainst.The body 10 of the guard provides at the rear end thereof spaced earsadapted to telescope over the ends of the sleeve 3i such spaced earshaving opposed holes for the reception of a pivot pin. Body 10 is placedover the sleeve and clamp combination in the position shown in Fig. 2,the pivot pin 34 then being passed successively through one of the holesin the ears in the side walls of the shield, through the sleeve 30, andthence through the hole in the other ear on the side wall of the body10. The pivot pin 34 is held in place by means of the lock washer 38 andthe nut 4% on an end thereof opposite its head 36. If it is desired toprevent easy disassembly of the shield from the gun, the end of thepivot pin protruding past the nut 40 may be peened over or upset. Insuch manner tampering with the shield to remove it from the gun, as bychildren, is prevented.

In order constantly to urge the shield 11 into the closed, safety,position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, there is provided, in the embodiment ofthe shield illustrated, a coil spring 42 disposed about the sleeve 30,one end 4-4 of such spring protruding outwardly into a position above aportion of the auxiliary trigger 12, the other end 46 of such springcontinuing upwardly into contact with the rear of one of the portions 22of the clamp. The coil spring has such torque that it firmly thrusts theshield into the closed position but does not impose undue resistance tothe retraction of the shield into the position shown in Fig. 3 when itis desired to shoot the gun.

Means is provided whereby the safety shield 10 may be lockedsubstantially in the closed, safety, position shown in Figs. 1 and 2,thereby to prevent unwanted tampering with and discharge of the gun. Theside walls 16 of the shield are provided with opposed openings 48therethrough at a position, when the shield is closed, well forward ofthe trigger 4 and lying slightly above the inner surface of the triggerguard 8. When it is desired to lock the shield in the position shown inFigs. 1 and 2, it is necessary only to slip one leg of a padlock throughthe opposed holes 43 and above the trigger guard 8 and to fasten thelock. When so locked, the shield 10 can be pivoted downwardly verylittle, if at all, and thus prevents access to the trigger 4. In thefield, when the padlock is removed, the holes 48 are far enough removedfrom the location of the trigger 4 so that no body or object can passthrough either one or both such holes and engage the trigger todischarge it accidentally.

From the above, it is believed that the manner of operation of thesafety shield and of the firearm equipped with it will be obvious.However, the use of such devices will be briefly described for clarity.Ordinarily, in the field, a right-handed gunner will carry his gun, inready position, with his left hand beneath the barrel forwardly of thetrigger and with his right hand so positioned that the fingers thereofare beneath the gun, at least some of the fingers being forward of thetrigger and trigguard position. In Fig. l the fingers of the gunnerstrigger or right hand are shown in such ready position. In suchposition, with the safety guard 10 attached to the gun as shown, therear fingers of the trigger hand are disposed, at lea t to some extent,over the body of the shield 10 and thus tend to aid the spring 42 inmaintaining the shield in closed position, although the spring 42 issufficient for such purpose.

When the hunter wishes to shoot, he raises the gun, at the same timeslipping his right hand rearwardly along the gun toward the position inwhich the index or first finger 52 of the trigger hand will engage thetrigger 4. Before this takes place, and in the same natural,instinctive, motion of the trigger hand, the middle or second finger 50of the same hand first engages the auxiliary trigger 12 by the safetyshield as such finger 50 slips rearwardly along the bottom surface ofthe shield 10. Further backward motion of the trigger hand carries thefinger 51D rearwardly and upwardly to impel the safety shield to openposition as shown in Fig. 3. When the middle finger 50 has reached suchposition that the shield 13 is fully open, the index finger of the sameshooting hand is opposite the trigger 4 so that it may be thrustslightly sidewardly into engagement with such trigger to pull it and todischarge the gun. After the gun has been shot, when the trigger hand isremoved therefrom, the shield 10 immediately returns to the closed,safety, posi tion shown in Figs. 1 and 2. This is particularlyimportant, when the gun is either a double barrel shotgun or anautomatic firearm such as an automatic shotgun or rifle, because itmeans that no other safety means need be employed with the gun to renderthe gun safe from accidental discharge but ready for instant shooting.

Comparative time trials in the field with (l) a single barrel shotgunprovided with a safety shield in accordance with the present inventionand with (2) a similar gun used under the same circumstances, and withthe ordinary safety off but without such safety shield, show that agunner, after a short period of training in the use of the presentsafety shield, can get off practically the ame number of shots insuccession with gun l) as with gun (2). Such trials further show thatwith a gun equipped with the shield of the invention there is little. if

any, difierence between guns (1) and (2) in the interval from thegunners perception of a game bird or animal to his getting off anaccurate shot at it.

I claim as new the following:

1. In combination with a gun having a trigger and a trigger guard, aselectively operable shield for covering the trigger comprising a bodyopen at its top and having spaced generally parallel side wallsextending upwardly, said body fitting about the trigger guard in housingrelation thereto for preventing accidental contact of a finger or otherobject with the trigger, means attaching the shield for pivoting at itsrear on the gun about a horizontal axis, spring means constantly urgingthe shield upwardly into housing relation to the trigger guard, anauxiliary trigger for retracting the shield downwardly from such housingrelation, the auxiliary trigger extending rearwardly and downwardly fromthe shield rearwardly of the pivot, the auxiliary trigger being sospaced relative to the shooting trigger that the two triggers aresimultaneously engageable by two fingers on the trigger hand with suchhand in normal shooting position, the auxiliary trigger being engageableby a finger other than the index finger of the trigger hand, the shieldwhen thus retracted allowing access of the index finger of the shootinghand to the trigger of the gun.

2. In combination with a gun having a trigger and a trigger guard, aselectively operable shield for covering the trigger comprising a bodyopen at its top and having spaced generally parallel side wallsextending upwardly, said body fitting about the trigger guard in housingrelation thereto for preventing accidental contact of a finger or otherobject with the trigger, means attaching the shield for pivoting at itsrear on the gun about a horizontal axis, spring means constantly urgingthe shield upwardly into housing relation to the trigger guard, anauxiliary trigger for retracting the shield downwardly from such housingrelation, the auxiliary trigger extending rearwardly and downwardly fromthe shield in the vicinity of the pivot, the auxiliary trigger being sospaced relative to the shooting trigger that the two triggers aresimultaneously engageable by two fingers on the trigger hand with suchhand in normal shooting position, the auxiliary trigger being engageableby a finger other than the index finger of the trigger hand, the shieldwhen thus retracted allowing access of the index finger of the shootinghand to the trigger of the gun.

3. A selectively operable shield for covering the trigger of a gunhaving a trigger and a transversely-open trigger guard, said shieldcomprising a trough-shaped body open at its top and having a bottom wallformed with upturned end portions and spaced generally parallel sidewalls integrally united to the bottom walls along opposite side edgesthereof and extending upwardly above the bottom wall, said body beingadapted to fit about the trigger guard in housing relation thereto forpreventing accidental contact of a finger or other object with thetrigger, clamping means adapted to attach the shield at its rear to thegun, said last named means including a horizontal pivot pin for allowingthe shield to pivot downwardly and rearwardly about a horizontal axis,spring means adapted constantly to urge the shield upwardly into housingrelation to the trigger guard, and an auxiliary trigger for retractingthe shield downwardly from such housing relation, the auxiliary triggedextending rearwardly and downwardly from the shield rearwardly of thepivot pin, the auxiliary trigger being adapted to be operated by afinger of the trigger hand in normal shooting position for retractingthe shield downwardly from such housing relation to permit access of theindex finger of the trigger hand to the trigger of the gun, the shieldbeing so constructed and arranged that the auxiliary trigger of the thusmounted shield is so spaced from the trigger of the gun that suchtriggers are simultaneously engageable by the aforesaid fingers of thetrigger hand without shifting such hand.

4. A selectively operable shield for covering the trigger of a gunhaving a trigger and a transversely-open trigger guard, said shieldcomprising a trough-shaped body open at its top and having a bottom wallformed with upturned end portions and spaced generally parallel sidewalls integrally united to the bottom walls along opposite side edgesthereof and extending upwardly above the bottom wall, said body beingadapted to fit about the trigger guard in housing relation thereto forpreventing accidental contact of a finger or other object with thetrigger, clamping means adapted to attach the shield at its rear to thegun, said last named means including a horizontal pivot pin for allowingthe shield to pivot downwardly and rearwardly about a horizontal axis,spring means adapted constantly to urge the shield upwardly into housingrelation to the trigger guard, and an auxiliary trigger for retractingthe shield downwardly from such housing relation, the auxil iary triggerextending rearwardly and downwardly from the shield in the vicinity ofthe pivot pin, the auxiliary trigger being adapted to be operated by afinger of the trigger hand in normal shooting position for retractingthe shield downwardly from such housing relation to permit access of theindex finger of the trigger hand to the trigger of the gun, the shieldbeing so constructed and arranged that the auxiliary trigger of the thusmounted shield is so spaced from the trigger of the gun that suchtriggers are simultaneously engageable by the aforesaid fingers of thetrigger hand without shifting such hand.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS181,301 Altman Aug. 22, 1876 955,237 Westcott et a1 Apr. 19, 1910965,386 Hansen July 26, 1910 2,080,202 Drake May 11, 1937 2,444,649Jacobs July 6, 1948 2,590,516 Breymann Mar. 25, 1952 2,638,694 MorrisMay 19, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 350,867 France Apr. 21, 1905

